by J. Orlin Grabbe

(continued from Part 40)

"The political process is moving onto
the Internet. Both within the United
States and internationally,
individuals, interest groups, and even
nations are using the Internet to find
each other, discuss the issues, and
further their political goals" (Charles
Swett, "Strategic Assessment: the
Internet," Office of the Assistant
Secretary of Defense for Special
Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict,
Room 2B525, the Pentagon, 17 July 1995).

"I don't know where you get your information, but
it's better than the Company's," Hayes said over the
phone.

"Maybe you should tell the CIA they should learn
to use the Internet," I replied.

"I did." Hayes' tone was matter-of-fact.

My report on Newt Gingrich (to aid Charles Hayes
in his preparation for their meeting) had focused on
motivational issues--what makes Newt Gingrich tick.
Like the time when, as a graduate student in history at
Tulane University in New Orleans, Gingrich served as the
spokesman for a student activist group which was
condemning censorship of the campus newspaper, the
Hullaballoo. (The administration had judged as obscene
nude photos which the group considered artwork.) But I
had also reported on one of Gingrich's little-known
financial relationships--one that had apparently been
missed by the CIA or, perhaps, the Fifth Column.

Hayes spent two days getting ready for his
meeting with Gingrich. Gingrich had done his homework
equally well, apparently obtaining a good bit of
information from Hayes' highly-classified file at the CIA.
"He reminded me of things I had forgotten myself," Hayes
said.

They came to an agreement, of sorts. "Can you
trust Gingrich," I asked Hayes. I had a few doubts,
myself, but it wasn't my problem. "We'll see," Hayes
said. "I told him the agreement was over the first time he
lied to me."

Among other things, it was agreed that the Fifth
Column would become a resource to Kenneth Starr. Gingrich
would act as intermediary. (This arrangement lasted until
Hayes and Starr eventually established their
own direct relationship. Shortly after the agreement with
Gingrich, the Fifth Column came across a $286,000 wire
transfer to the bank account of Lisa Foster, the wife of
Vince Foster, that had been made four days prior to Vince
Foster's death. The transfer--make out of a bank account
at Mellon bank--had been effected by Sheila Foster
Anthony, Vince Foster's sister and the wife of Beryl
Anthony. Sheila Anthony was at the time Assistant
Attorney General for Legislative Affairs. The records of
the payment were turned over to Gingrich, who then
turned them over to Starr.) Starr was having his problems
at the time. He wasn't able to find the financial and other
records he needed for his investigation. And, as he soon
enough discovered, some of the FBI agents assigned to
him were running their own agenda, by intimidating
certain witnesses or generating prejudicial reports about
them to influence the Special Prosecutor's use of their
testimony. (By a curious coincidence, the wire transfer to
Lisa Foster was made on July 16, 1993, the same day Bill
Clinton had a two-hour meeting with Louis Freeh,
preparatory to naming him FBI Director the following
week.)

Gingrich agreed to a number of things, for his part.
He agreed to reopen the investigation into the death of
Vince Foster. (Shortly thereafter, Gingrich ridiculed the
Foster suicide conjecture, and ordered William Clinger,
Chairman of the House Government Reform and
Oversight Committee, to reopen the investigation into the
circumstances of Foster's death. The Committee,
however, later deferred to the Starr investigation into the
same topic. Gingrich's statements were followed by a
reading of evidence against the Foster suicide conjecture
on the House floor by Dan Burton of Indiana. Burton
soon will be replacing William Clinger as Chairman of
the House Government Committee.)

And Gingrich agreed to write a letter to Alan
Greenspan on certain money-laundering matters--
including dealing with the fact that a highly-placed
official in the Federal Reserve was part of the national
money-laundering network. (Gingrich sent a six-page
letter to Greenspan. Although I was somewhat familiar
with the information in the letter, I attempted to get a
copy directly from either Greenspan or Gingrich, but
failed to do so. Gingrich explained his denial that the
letter existed with the statement that "half of politics is
lying, anyway." Someone later relayed an account of a
meeting he had with Gingrich, in Gingrich's office.
Gingrich said he had "never heard of Orlin Grabbe."
After a while, this individual noticed a copy of my
textbook on international finance on Gingrich's bookshelf.
"I guess, with you being a politician, people send you a
lot of books that you don't get time to read," the person
said to Gingrich. "I bought every one of these books
myself, with my own money," Gingrich supposedly
declared, "and I've read them all." Well, perhaps Gingrich
has a touch of Alzheimer's.)

Gingrich had flown into Somerset, KY, by
helicopter, landing near the former Holiday Inn.
Afterward, Hayes and I always referred to Gingrich as
"Helicopter Boy" in conversation.